A suite future in China

LUXURY hospitality association Relais & Chateaux plans to expand its presence in China by bringing more independent hotels and restaurants with distinctive cultural identities into its global network.

The association currently has seven members in the country, including five properties on the Chinese mainland.

It aims to increase its China network to between 25 and 30 members within the next five years, depending on the availability of properties that meet its standards.

With travellers increasingly seeking authentic and personalised experiences, boutique hotels that combine local heritage, gastronomy and nature are gaining popularity in China’s high-end tourism market.

During a recent visit to Beijing, Laurent Gardinier, president of Relais & Chateaux, said China’s rich cultural diversity and rapidly improving hospitality sector provide strong potential for future growth.

“China is not just one country; China is also many different cultures that can be discovered through hospitality,” he said, noting that architecture, cuisine and local traditions are key elements in presenting the identity of different destinations.

Highly selective

Unlike large hotel groups, the association does not own or operate properties, but affiliates independently run establishments that share its values of local culture, gastronomy and personalised service.

Gardinier said the association is highly selective when accepting new members.

Each candidate property is evaluated through around 600 criteria, including service quality, cultural value, gastronomy and sustainability, followed by anonymous inspections.

“Size is not the main matter for us,” he said. “The values of the properties are much more important.”

The association currently has several members in China that reflect this philosophy.

They include Xitan Hotel, a boutique hotel located near Tanzhe Temple, and King’s Joy, a high-end vegetarian restaurant in Beijing. Gardinier highlighted King’s Joy as an example of how Chinese gastronomy can represent local culture on the global stage.

He said the restaurant, which focuses on plant-based cuisine and local ingredients, reflects the spirit of Relais & Chateaux by showcasing a distinctive Chinese culinary identity.

“We are here to promote Chinese hospitality,” he added. “We are not here to promote a big international brand.”

Gastronomy remains a core part of the association’s strategy.

Gardinier said food and beverage accounts for nearly half of the group’s global business, and the association hopes to discover more independent chefs in China who can represent regional cuisines.

Sustainability is another priority. Relais & Chateaux has set a goal of achieving carbon neutrality across its global network by 2040 and has introduced carbon footprint assessments and sustainability evaluations for its members.

Gardinier said the association’s expansion in China will continue to focus on quality rather than quantity, aiming to showcase the country’s diverse cultural traditions through hospitality.

Rising to top

In a separate development, Accor chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) Sebastien Bazin said China is on track to overtake the United States and become the world’s largest hospitality and tourism market within seven to 10 years.

The French hospitality group recently signed a raft of new luxury and upscale hotel project deals across key Chinese markets and laid out an ambitious growth roadmap to double its domestic portfolio to 1,600 properties over the next five to six years, underscoring its long-term commitment to one of the world’s most resilient travel markets.

“The main reason, no doubt, is that China will be the largest hospitality market in the world,” Bazin said.

“China will be bigger than America in seven to 10 years as both a host country and a source country, which means we can grow in tier-one, tier-two and tier-three cities.”

Inbound tourist arrivals to China have maintained an average annual growth rate of 20% over the past three years.

“Visa-free access has helped tremendously in bringing people to China, and social media and TikTok have given huge visibility to what China is.

“People want to come more and more to China,” Bazin added.

Deepening commitment

After more than 40 years in the market, Accor operates more than 830 hotels across more than 50 cities in China, encompassing 17 brands and over 140,000 rooms.

Its comprehensive brand matrix ranges from luxury to economy, with more than 50 luxury hotels in operation and more than 40 luxury projects in the pipeline.

Kent Zhu, CEO of Accor Greater China, said the group is pursuing quality-focused expansion alongside scale.

“We are not simply pursuing scale growth; instead, we are focusing more on creating experiential value and building a sound brand ecosystem,” he noted.

At a news conference, Accor signed six new luxury and upscale hotel project deals, covering key markets in the Yangtze River Delta region, northern and western China.

Beyond the new signings, several landmark renovation projects are progressing steadily.

The 117-year-old former Dalian Hotel will be converted into a Fairmont hotel. The Fairmont Peace Hotel in Shanghai will be upgraded to a Raffles property.

According to Bazin, the rapid evolution of China’s consumer market and its innovation in artificial intelligence are the two core drivers behind the group’s deepened commitment.

On the consumer side, nearly 40% of China’s high-net-worth individuals are under the age of 35, shifting consumption preferences from material display to lifestyle enjoyment and emotional experiences.

Meanwhile, the nation’s elderly population of more than 300 million people aged over 60 has ample savings and a strong willingness to travel, together forming diversified growth momentum.— China Daily/ANN